1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to toilets or water closets. In particular, the present invention relates to an improved attachment for a standard toilet which will allow the user to assume a physiologically correct position for bowel movement.
2. Description of the Related Art
Toilets or water closets are typically designed with a seat which extends in a substantially horizontal plane. This forces the user to a sitting position in which the trunk of the body extends substantially vertically and the thighs extend substantially horizontally. This is despite the fact that it has been known for many years that a crouching position, in which the legs are elevated such that the thighs extend at an angle and approach the trunk of the body, is the proper physiologic position for a bowel movement, as this position straightens the colon.
Various arrangements have been proposed to allow the user to assume such a crouched position. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 559,304 to Muckenhirn and U.S. Pat. No. 906,053 to McAuliffe both propose toilets in which the entire bowl is formed to facilitate such a position. However, both of these arrangements would require the user to replace existing toilets, and both would present problems for the user to mount and dismount the toilet. This problem in mounting is especially aggravated for the elderly, which may most benefit by the crouched position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,514 to Sakamoto discloses a toilet seat and foot rest which would replace the standard seat on a typical toilet. While this arrangement does not require the replacement of the existing toilet, the mounting and dismounting problems are still present, and the footrest will interfere with passage in front of the toilet. Similar problems are associated with the device proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,466,140 to Sakamoto, which discloses a footrest which attaches to the front of a standard toilet and fits beneath the standard toilet seat, raising the seat in the front. A further footrest attachment is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,298,440 to Lyons. This arrangement reduces the problems associated with the foot rest extending outwardly from the toilet, by pivoting the foot rest such that it may be lowered to an inoperative and space saving position. However, the foot rest is maintained in the operative position by engagement with the toilet rim, causing an unsanitary arrangement for a user when moving the device between the operative and inoperative positions.